


Rewritten: Tales of Ladybug and Chat Noir

by SlashFandoms



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: (Minor) Adrien/Nino, Adrien is a bisexual disaster, Alya and Nino always know, Bisexual Adrien Agreste, F/F, F/M, M/M, Marinette isn’t a creepy stalker, angst? maybe
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-08
Updated: 2021-01-08
Packaged: 2021-03-18 20:09:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,173
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28623861
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SlashFandoms/pseuds/SlashFandoms
Summary: As much as I like this show, it needs to be rewritten. It’s suffering, so here I am. Here’s what I’ll include,•3rd POV•Marinette’s appearance is altered to look like her mother’s.•Everyone’s personalities are sort of different.•I will focus more on Adrien/Chat Noir.•This will make sense.•I’m not a coward, LGBTQ characters. (Bi Adrien)•Chloé will get a redemption arc, Lila won’t.•LadyNoir will have a healthy friendship.•Ladrien won’t be boring.•Marinette will actually talk to Adrien.•I’m not rewriting the specials unless y’all ask.•Updates every week or two, I still have school.(I’m new to AO3, excuse my constant editing.)
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Alya Césaire/Nino Lahiffe, Ivan Bruel/Mylène Haprèle, Juleka Couffaine/Rose Lavillant, Lê Chiến Kim/Ondine, Marc Anciel/Nathaniel Kurtzberg
Comments: 4
Kudos: 27





	Rewritten: Tales of Ladybug and Chat Noir

**Author's Note:**

> I’ll write part 2 in a week or two, I just have school and drained myself writing this. In the future, I’ll write multiple part episodes in one chapter, but since this is my first time writing on here, I wanted to see how well received my story would be.

[Terribly sorry that it took so long to write and publish this, I still have school and it’s been a bit overwhelming. But, here it is!]

A man stood in a secret room. It was intended to be an office away from distractions, but the furniture wasn’t able to be moved up there without a lot of money getting invested in it.  
The man was wealthy, but he postponed the project for a few weeks, thinking over whether it was a good choice or not. Then he dropped it completely when something much more valuable came to his possession.

“Nooroo, tell me about the powers again,” he asked.  
A small, pastel purple creature was floating in front of the man. Their purple eyes filled with curiosity and a hint of uneasiness.  
“Mine or all of the miraculous?” They asked.  
“Both.”

Nooroo’s uneasiness went away as their eyes lit up with excitement.  
“As you wish, sir—“  
“You will refer to me as master!” the man ordered, causing Nooroo to quiver.  
“Yes, master, my apologies.”

Nooroo flew back and went on with the presentation, trying to ignore their fear growing in them.

“Many centuries ago, there were several jewels created called the Miraculous. They were used by superheroes to keep the world safe from evil.”

‘Hmm,’ the man thought. ‘How strong is this power?’

“All of them grant different powers with hundreds of kwamis around, but two of them stand out the most, because of how powerful they are. They’re the earrings of Ladybug and the ring of the Black Cat.”

The man smiled, “Why are they so powerful?”

“The Ladybug holds the power of creation, while the Black Cat holds the power of destruction. Combined, these jewels can unleash absolute power, with the addition of one wish. Any wish in the world.”

The man’s eyes widened in shock at the last part of Nooroo’s speech. He could bring back...he looked down at his brooch, it was opened to reveal the picture of a woman.

“Master?” Nooroo asked, hesitantly. “Are you all right?”

He closed his brooch, putting it down and straightening himself out. “Nooroo, tell me about my powers now.”

The tone in their master’s voice made Nooroo feel uneasy again, but they didn’t want to disobey him. They were starting to fear the harsh tone he used against them.

“The butterfly Miraculous allows a user to give someone else a superpower, making them a devoted follower to the user.”

The man smiled again, a smile that Nooroo was starting to dislike. “That user is me. This means that I can make anyone my minion, correct?”  
“Yes, master.”  
“Does that include turning them into a monster so they can find the Ladybug and Black Cat miraculous for me?”  
Nooroo’s eyes widened. They were starting to suspect the worst.  
“Uh, yes, technically—“  
“That’s great news.”  
Nooroo panicked. “But, master! No one knows where their jewels are, all of their locations are a secret to protect them from getting into the wrong hands!”

The man laughed, it was short and loud, echoing through the walls of his chamber.  
“Then it’s a good thing that I’ll use you to get their jewels. They need to be in the proper hands.”

“Master, I must warn you.”  
His expression hardened.  
Nooroo hesitantly went on. “For that wish to happen, you must make a sacrifice that’s equal to your wish, no matter how big or small it is.”

The man’s brain stopped. Instead of seeing a darkly lit purple-and-black floor, he saw her again. Her sitting at the dinner table with him, her sitting under the summer sun, laughing. He then saw the glass that she was hidden beneath and forced himself to return to the present.

“With my plan, I’ll get Ladybug and Chat Noir’s Miraculous in no time! For now, I still need to practice.”

After ten minutes, he filled the room with butterflies. They flew around the window that blasted light from the outside, it was like they wanted to escape, but were too afraid to fly out.  
“Now is the time. Dark wings, rise!” 

He spread his arms, feeling his new suit slide on him like a glove. When his transformation was done, he again adored his dark purple-and-black suit creating a dark and mysterious feeling around the room. His favorite part of being in his new form was his cane, which also contained a sword inside.  
It was dark indigo, smooth and hollow. There was a large stone that sat on top of a cylinder that the man grabbed onto. 

He then decided to test out his powers again.  
“It is time for Hawkmoth to show what he can do. Today is the first day of my genius plan!”

Wayzz woke up, startled. They tried to remember their surroundings, trying to reach out to touch something to ground them to reality. They sighed in relief when they still felt the gramophone behind them.  
The words from their dream still echoed through their ears. ‘Evil is coming your way.’

They knew they needed to tell Master Fu immediately. They flew from behind the gramophone and saw that Master Fu was in the middle of a session. They hesitated but then decided to interrupt it.  
“Master,” they whispered, worriedly. 

Master Fu nearly jumped, catching the attention of the man on the mat.  
“Master?” He asked, rising from his laid position.  
“Uh, yes,” Master Fu said, trying to cover Wayzz up. “It’s all part of the process. Master, master, master.”  
The man, confused, laid his head back down again.

“Master,” Wayzz said again, more quiet this time, “this is urgent.”  
“Oh, I’m sorry,” Master Fu told the man. “But, I have an emergency appointment that I have to head to,” he lied.  
He got up and Master Fu led him out.  
“You can come back next week, I apologize again,” Master Fu said, opening the door for him. 

After he closed it, Wayzz flew in front of Master Fu and had a worried expression on their face.  
“Master, I’m afraid that I sense a terrible energy and a dream I had confirmed it.”  
“What happened in it?”  
“I saw a man in a hood, I couldn’t see his face. There was a fire in front of us and he had bones with writing on them.”  
Master Fu already knew what Wayzz’s dream meant.  
“The hooded man threw them into the fire and the writings revealed that a great evil was coming our way,” Wayzz finished, nervously. 

“I’m afraid that this might be a connection to the butterfly Miraculous,” Master Fu worried.  
“Is it time, Master?” Wayzz asked.  
Master Fu stiffened. Unpleasant memories came back to him, the memories he wanted to forget.  
“I think it may be,” Master Fu said. He was hesitant of making such a big decision again, he had already made such great mistakes.  
“Master?” Wayzz asked.  
Master Fu sighed, knowing what he must do. He would transform himself if he could, but he was aware that he couldn’t fight like before. He was now one hundred and eighty-six years old, he would be out of his mind if he chose to be Jade Turtle again. 

The green kwami flew over to the gramophone and stood in front of the dragons on the front.  
Master Fu walked over and stared at the dragons for a few seconds. He did not want to make the same mistake again.  
“Master, do what you think is right. We may still have time before anything bad happens,” Wayzz said, trying to comfort him.  
“No, no,” he assured them. “I know what I must do. Perhaps it is time to take a risk again. I just hope that this time I won’t regret it.”  
Wayzz flew to Master Fu’s side and smiled. “Mistakes help you learn, you are not the only guardian to make mistakes.”  
Master Fu felt better about his choice and decided that if he didn’t do this now, it wouldn’t happen. 

He pressed on the eyes of the dragons, they turned red and more buttons revealed themselves. Master Fu put in the code and watched the gramophone open up to reveal a black-and-red box.  
Master Fu sighed and opened the box, staring at the missing jewels.

“Which ones are you choosing, Master?” Wayzz asked.  
“If this is what I think it is, then we need the best help we can get,” Master Fu said, with more sureness as he took out the two Miraculous from the middle. 

“Plagg, Tikki, I have some unfortunate news.”

“Marinette, your alarm has been going off for the past ten minutes! You’re going to be late for your first day back!” 

Marinette groaned, pulling her sheets off her face and staring at the ceiling.  
“Today is going to be awful,” she said to herself.

She then rolled out of bed and groggily got ready for school. As she put her hair in her signature low ponytail look, she thought of the worst that could happen.  
‘What if we have a pop quiz that I’m not ready for?  
‘What if I’m late and go to the wrong class and get locked out?  
‘What if—Chloé.’

Marinette’s face dropped. She stared into her eyes in the mirror and saw Chloé Bourgeois—her enemy. There was no doubt they would be in the same class again.  
After brushing her teeth, Marinette put on her jacket and picked up her purse. As much as she hated Chloé and wanted to blame her for her hatred of school, that wasn’t entirely true.  
Truth was, she was nervous. She wasn’t exactly an outgoing and social person, she was more awkward and unsure of herself. Chloé just made it worse, she would constantly pick on Marinette, and it made her feel more insecure.

What made her happy was her dream of becoming a fashion designer. She was holding a purse that she made herself, with some help from her mom, but it was mostly done by Marinette. She remembered how hard she worked on the flower design and how proud her mom was. 

“Marinette! Your breakfast is ready!” 

Marinette smiled and slung her purse over her shoulder. She grabbed her backpack and opened the trapdoor and headed downstairs to greet her mom.  
“I was about to go up there and see if you were awake,” her mom joked.  
Marinette smiled again and sat down, starting to eat her egg tart.

“So,” her mom started, “how do you feel about going back?”  
Marinette’s mood altered as she remembered Chloé Bourgeois.  
“Not too excited.”  
“What?” Her mom turned around and stood next to her. “Why not? It’s a brand new year!”  
“Exactly,” Marinette groaned. “A brand new year for Chloé to be in my class again. All she’s done is make fun of me.”  
Her mom patted her shoulder, taking her plate. “Oh, honey. Surely the school will change things up a bit, look on the bright side, Mari.”  
“Thanks.”

Her mom nodded, taking her plate to the sink and turning the water on.  
“Go on and take your macarons from your father, he’s in the other room. You don’t want to be late.”  
Marinette felt a little bit better but still guessed that Chloé would be in her class. Right before she walked away, her mom stopped her.  
“How about this? This evening, your father and I are baking a birthday cake as a custom order. You can help us if you want and talk about your school day,” she suggested.  
Marinette nodded, liking the idea. “Thanks, mom. I’ll try to be positive today.” She then kissed her mother’s cheek and went to collect her macarons from her dad.

“Look who it is! My favorite daughter!” Her dad announced as she walked in. Marinette giggled, leaning on the counter.  
“Good morning, dad.”  
“Hey, sweetheart. I know you might be nervous on your first day back, but I assure you that your classmates will love you when you give them these delicious macarons,” he said, handing her the box. Marinette accepted, feeling better. She opened the box and saw the designs on each macaron.  
“Guess who came up with that design?” Her dad asked.  
“Your favorite daughter in the world?”  
“How’d you guess?”  
Marinette chuckled. “I guess I’m just a good guesser.”  
Her dad pulled her into a hug. “That’s the spirit!” 

Someone chuckled behind both of them. Marinette and her dad broke their hug to see her mom.  
“You’re not going to include your mom in your family hug?” She joked.  
“Of course we will,” Marinette said, putting the box of macarons down and gesturing for her mom to join. 

After a short family hug, Marinette felt confident enough to even face Chloé and Sabrina. Sabrina wasn’t all that bad, though. She was like Chloé’s minion, just going along with whatever she was saying. 

“All right, honey. It’s time for you to get to school,” her dad said. Marinette nodded, walking out of her house. Until her dad called after her.  
“Marinette! You forgot your macarons!” 

After Marinette ran back inside to get them, she took a deep breath before crossing the street. She watched the people cross with her and smiled at an old man, who smiled back at her.  
Right before she finished crossing the street, she heard a thud followed by someone groaning.  
Marinette turned around, seeing that the old man she smiled at had dropped his cane and fell in the middle of the street. 

Marinette heard a car speeding the man’s way and immediately dropped her box and rushed to his aid. She quickly grabbed his cane and helped him stand up. When she realized that they weren’t fast enough, she dragged the man to the sidewalk as quickly as she could. They both ended up tripping in the process and fell on the sidewalk, Marinette face first. 

After regaining her composure, Marinette noticed her macarons weren’t with her. She then saw them scattered on the street. She sighed.  
‘Could things get worse?’

Things did get worse. It was now time for pedestrians to walk, and some of them walked over the macarons. Marinette frowned, disappointed in herself and helped the old man up again.  
“I’m sorry, sir. I just saw that car and tried to help. I guess I acted on impulse,” Marinette apologized and tried to explain herself.

The old man chuckled. “It’s quite all right, miss. I want to thank you for helping me, it looks like there are still great people in Paris.”  
Marinette nodded and said her goodbyes. She then walked over to the remaining macarons and put them in the box. About half of them were gone. Marinette’s smile dropped again and she got up, crossing the street safely.  
She was about to walk to her school, but then she turned around. The old man was gone, which Marinette questioned, especially since he wore a bright red shirt, but she still faced that way and thought about what he said.

‘...it looks like there are still great people in Paris.’

That made Marinette happy. She was beyond scared to go to school when she woke up, but her parent’s words and the old man’s words helped her feel better. She felt like she would be all right today. Even if Chloé was in her class.

A loud sound interrupted her thoughts. The bell.

“Oh, no!” Marinette said to herself. She realized she was going to be late and ran to school.

Luckily, she made it to class and asked her teacher if she could pass out her remaining macarons. When her teacher approved, she saw students that she recognized from her previous school years. 

There was Rose, a joyous and bubbly girl who was kind to everyone. She and Marinette got along really well, they had quite a lot in common.  
“Hey, Marinette! Are you excited about this year?”  
“Uh,” Marinette started, unsure of what to say. After a few seconds, the old man’s words echoed in her mind. She then smiled and nodded. “Yes, our teacher seems really nice. And no sign of Chloé this year.”  
She then handed Rose a macaron and went to more desks. 

“Nino,” a voice from the front of the class called. “Why don’t you sit in the front this year? You’re always in the back.”  
Marinette watched as a boy with orange headphones and glasses groaned and walked up to the front of the class, sitting in the first row. Marinette decided that she should also sit closer to the teacher, she needed to try new things this year. 

She also decided to hand Nino a macaron. They hadn’t interacted a lot, but Marinette knew that Nino was the head of the school radio as a DJ. He took it and muttered a ‘thanks.’ 

After a few more minutes, she had one macaron left over and saw down a desk behind Nino’s, in the second row. More students walked in that she recognized and waved to.  
Though she must have arrived early because the class didn’t start yet, oddly enough. Marinette took the time to rest. Though, because she didn’t get much sleep the night before, she started dozing off. 

Until someone slammed their hand on her desk, startling her.  
Marinette couldn’t believe it. Chloé Bourgeois. And behind her, her minion Sabrina Raincomprix. Both of them had evil smirks on their faces, it was clear they were about to make problems with Marinette.

“What do you want, Chloé?” Marinette asked, feeling confidence bursting through her veins.  
“Marinette Dupain-Cheng, we meet again. Bummer, now move seats, this one’s mine,” she declared.  
“What?” Marinette asked, confused. “We get to choose our seats, I chose this one.”  
Chloé let out a quick laugh, obviously picking at Marinette. “Looks like Dupain-Cheng is finally learning to speak, which means she has ears. So, I want you to use your ears to listen to me telling you to move seats.”  
“Chloé,” Marinette stated, sternly. “We get to choose our seats this year. I chose this one.”

Then, someone slid to Marinette’s left side.  
“Exactly,” Sabrina said. “New school year, new seats. And Chloé and I choose these.”  
“There are other seats in the classroom, why can’t you just sit over there?” Marinette asked, pointing to the seats to her right. 

Chloé frowned, not satisfied with the suggestion. “Dupain-Cheng, you must be on another planet if you don’t know who’s coming here.”  
Marinette raised her eyebrow, indicating she didn’t know what Chloé meant.  
Chloé and Sabrina gasped in unison. 

“This is one of the most important days ever! Adrien Agreste is coming—my BFF, and he’s sitting right there!” Chloé said, pointing to the seat next to Nino, who paid no attention to the conversation.  
“Who’s Adrien?” 

Sabrina grabbed Marinette’s shoulder and shook it. “How do you not know who Adrien Agreste is?!” She yelled, directly into Marinette’s ear.  
Marinette now felt uncomfortable and felt her confidence slipping away again.  
Chloé put her hand out, showing she was going to explain. “He’s only the son and model of the famous fashion mogul, Gabriel Agreste!”  
Marinette tried to think if she heard of him, his name sounded familiar, but she wasn’t sure if she knew who he was.

Chloé scoffed, crossing her arms. “He’s my BFF and he’s sitting in front of me, so move!”  
Marinette stuttered, then wasn’t able to form words anymore. She completely lost her confidence again.  
“Why don’t you go sit with the new four-eyes?” Chloé suggested, looking to the desk to Nino’s right.  
A girl was sitting there and she turned around after Chloé spoke. She was clearly upset that Chloé had insulted her for having glasses but remained silent.

“I—“ Marinette started, but Chloé interrupted. “Cat got your tongue?” She teased. 

“Leave her alone.” 

Marinette looked behind Chloé and saw the girl that Chloé had insulted. “Excuse me?” Chloé said, facing her.  
“She can sit with me, but you need to leave her alone,” she said, sternly. Marinette and Sabrina were shocked to see someone stand up to Chloé.  
“Who are you to tell me what to do?” Chloé asked, angrily.  
“Who are you to tell her what to do?” The girl asked in return. She then looked at Marinette and offered her hand.  
Marinette hesitantly took it and took her macarons as she watched Sabrina and Chloé smile, knowing they won the fight.

Marinette sighed as she sat down, taking off her backpack.  
She got defeated by the queen bees, again.  
“Hey,” the girl said. “Don’t beat yourself up, those girls are evil.”  
Marinette looked over at her and saw that she had a proud smile on her face that Marinette wished she could put on.  
“Thanks,” she murmured. “I just wish I could handle Chloé the way you did. I thought I had it today, but I was wrong.”  
The girl placed her hand on Marinette’s shoulder and her smiled changed. It looked warm and caring. 

“I can’t take all the credit,” she admitted. “I’ve gotten a lot of advice from my idol, Majestia.” She then pulled her phone out, showing a smiling woman wearing a bright red-and-blue suit. Marinette hadn’t heard of her before and was intrigued.  
The girl continued. “She gives great advice, she’s taught me how to be good and how to spot evil. Evil like that girl over there.” She pointed at Chloé.  
“Well, I’ve never been one for superheroes, but it sounds interesting,” Marinette said.  
“They are, and they helped me overcome some of my fears. And to stand up to bullies.”

“I’m Alya,” she said, holding her hand out. Marinette accepted. “Marinette.”  
She then opened her box and split her last macaron with Alya. 

“Okay, class. It’s time to start, I’ve given your classmates plenty of time to arrive and settle down,” the teacher announced. She then turned around and picked up chalk to write on the blackboard.  
“My name is Mrs Bustier,” she said, writing it down.

‘He should be here,’ Chloé thought to herself, not paying attention to Mrs Bustier. She was too busy looking at the empty seat that Adrien was supposed to be sitting in. 

Outside, Adrien stopped to catch his breath. He had managed to outrun Nathalie and his bodyguard. He looked at his surroundings, seeing his cologne ad and quickly looking away, craving water. 

He then ran up the steps but stopped in the middle again to calm himself down. As he was about to run up again, he heard a car screech and then heard two doors slam. His expression turned to defeat and cowardliness as he turned around to see Nathalie and his bodyguard, looking angrily at him.

“Adrien, please reconsider this. You know how your father will react if you go in there without his knowledge. Just think,” Nathalie pleaded. Adrien turned his back to face the doors of the school again. He suddenly felt out of breath again and looked down.  
“Nathalie, this is what I want.” He turned around to face both of them. “I’ve come all this way, why not just let me go?”  
Nathalie’s expression turned to shock, then she sighed. “Adrien, your father wants you home, you know this. If you go home now, then your punishment won’t be as severe.”

Adrien walked down the steps, feeling ashamed. He almost walked into the car, then stopped again.  
“Why can’t my father let me have this one thing?”  
His bodyguard grunted and got in the driver’s seat.  
“Your father doesn’t want you going to public school, he’s made that very clear,” Nathalie explained.  
Adrien stepped away from her, becoming angry. 

“Why is this about him? This should be about me, shouldn’t going to school be my choice? This is what I—“ Adrien stopped himself when he felt something hard under his foot. He looked down and saw that he was stepping on a cane. He bent down to pick it up and heard someone groaning.  
An old man was laying on the floor, looking at him and pointing at the cane. 

Adrien quickly ran over to him and helped him up, asking if he was okay.  
“I’m quite all right, young man. Thank you,” he said.  
Adrien smiled at him and the old man thanked him again, then turned around and walked away. He straightened himself up and adjusted the strap of his bag on his shoulder.

When Adrien turned back around, he saw Nathalie standing with a serious expression on her face, blocking the steps. He knew that he wouldn’t win this fight and he looked down in defeat, walking towards the car. Nathalie’s face turned calm and she led him to the backseat. 

Adrien sat in the car, leaning against the window and watching the school next to him disappear as he got driven home. All he wanted was one normal thing in his life.

“Please, don’t tell my father.”

“Class, listen up. Those who have PE next, Mr D’Argencourt is at the stadium waiting. The rest of you can head to the library,” Mrs Bustier said, dismissing everyone after the bell.

Chloé didn’t bother to get up with the rest of the kids. She was still staring at Adrien’s empty seat, wondering where he was.  
“Chloé?” Sabrina asked her.  
Chloé rolled her eyes. “He said he was coming, and he didn’t. I clearly need to have a chat with him, now let’s go.” 

“Ugh, Kim!” A deep voice called from behind Chloé. She looked over and saw a boy in a black shirt standing and looking angrily at a boy in a red hoodie.  
“Boys, what is going on?” Mrs Bustier asked.  
The angry boy ignored her and he went in for a punch.  
“Ivan Bruel, go to the principal’s office this instant!” Mrs Bustier ordered. 

Ivan grabbed his bag, growled at Kim and stormed out of the classroom. Chloé rolled her eyes again, following behind Ivan.  
“Where are we going anyway?” She asked Sabrina, who followed close behind her. 

“Oh, an angry student, I see,” Hawkmoth called, smiling to himself. “My powers will be of use today.”  
He held his hand out for a butterfly to land in. When one did, he put his right hand over it, watching as black spots made their way into the butterfly.  
When he released his hold, he saw that the butterfly was a deep black with glowing purple lines on it. He watched it fly away with an evil smile on his face.

“Yes, fly away, my little Akuma. Evilize him!” Hawkmoth yelled at the butterfly, watching it fly out the window. 

Ivan clutched the note in his right fist, he was so going to get Kim back after this. He opened the door to Mr Damocles’s office and was about to speak, but was interrupted.  
“Don’t you know how to knock, young man? Try again.”  
Ivan froze.  
“What are you waiting for? Come on, try again,” Mr Damocles repeated.  
Ivan groaned, closing the door.  
“Good. Now knock,” a muffled noise instructed.  
Ivan reached for the doorknob, then stopped when he saw a glowing butterfly. 

It flew towards his closed fist and suddenly he felt happy.  
“Hello, uh...Stoneheart. I’m Hawkmoth and I have a mission for you to complete,” he heard.  
“Yes,” Ivan said.  
“I need you to find me Ladybug and Chat Noir’s Miraculous and give them to me. In return, you can seek revenge on those who’ve wrong you.”  
Ivan smiled. “Deal.”

He then closed his eyes, feeling himself transform.

“Marinette, come here!” Alya called. Marinette looked up from her design journal to see her classmates in front of a TV. She quickly tucked her journal in her purse and ran over to see what they were staring at. 

She gasped when she saw a giant rock creature flip a car.  
“What is that?” She asked.  
She got her answer when the creature roared, “Kim!”  
Marinette gasped again. “Was that Ivan’s voice?”  
“Ivan’s?” Alya asked. She stepped back and bit her lip.  
Marinette couldn’t stop watching as people fled the streets as Ivan threw more cars around. As each car hit the ground, Marinette swore she heard it coming from outside. 

Alya’s face then changed to shock.  
“Marinette,” she said, grabbing her shoulders. Marinette turned around, terrified. “Ivan’s been transformed into a real-life supervillain!”  
Both of the girl’s faces turned to pure terror.

After a few more seconds, Alya’s face lit up.  
“That means there’s a superhero like Majestia!” She squealed, pulling her phone out.  
Marinette was too dumbfounded to say anything and watched Alya run from the library.

“Kim!” 

“Who was the president of the fifth French Republic?” Nathalie asked.  
Adrien sighed. “Everyone thinks it was De Gaulle, but it was René Coty before the first elections.”  
“Excellent, Adrien,” Nathalie said, marking her clipboard.  
Adrien was about to fall asleep until he saw his father. He immediately straightened up and watched him.

“Nathalie, a moment with my son, please.” Nathalie nodded, stepping out of the room. Adrien tensed, his father only requested to be alone with him when he was in trouble.

His father’s expression turned cold when he looked at Adrien.  
“You are not going to public school,” he said, bitterly. Adrien’s eyes widened, he quickly looked at the door, upset that Nathalie told him.  
“It is far too dangerous for you to be out in that cruel world. You won’t have anyone to protect you. You’re staying here.”  
“But—“  
“You are lucky that I’m not punishing you for somehow telling the school that you were attending.”  
Adrien was nervous but still tried to talk through his father. “I just want to go to school like other kids.”  
“You are not like other kids! You are my son. You are an Agreste.”  
“But, father—“ Adrien tried again.  
“That is the end! You will remain here.”

Adrien looked down at the table, trying to hold back his emotions.  
“Nathalie!”  
She entered and faced Adrien’s father.  
“You may continue the lesson,” he said, walking out of the room. 

Nathalie was about to speak, but then noticed Adrien’s angry expression.  
“Do you want to continue this lesson another time?”

Adrien ignored her, grabbed his bag and ran up to his room. To his relief, no one followed him and he shut his door.  
He leaned against it, letting his tears spill. He put his face in his hands and tried to cry quietly.  
‘Is wanting to go to a school that bad?’

Adrien walked over to his bed, lying down face first on his pillow.  
He imagined having more than one friend, he wanted to be in a friend group as a normal teenager. He imagined being happy around them, doing normal teenage things.  
Then a blonde woman appeared in his vision. His mother.  
Adrien remembered everything about her. Her laugh, her gentle smile, how she hugged him when he cried. Now, she wasn’t here to comfort him.

His memory was interrupted by a distant thud. He ignored it, rolling over to his back and going through his memories with his mom.  
He then heard it again, opening his eyes this time. He wiped his eyes and nose and got out of his bed. 

He sniffled and sat down on his couch, turning his TV on. He was surprised to see the news presenting a rock creature that was throwing cars. Ah, that’s where the thumping was coming from. After the creature roared, the screen cut to the mayor of Paris, speaking to everyone.  
“We are still trying to figure out what this creature is. I am warning everyone to stay inside for safety—“  
Adrien turned the TV off at those words, staring at his teary reflection on the black screen. He looked into his eyes and remembered his mom again. 

He started sobbing again, wishing she could return. 

Marinette watched the news from her computer. The police arrived at her school and ordered the staff to get home immediately.

She was sitting on her chair, the back of it turned so she could rest her chin on it.  
Marinette groaned. “I should have known something bad was going to happen.”  
She watched as the police yelled at Ivan and realized that she needed to distract herself. 

‘I’m safe, I’m safe, I’m safe,’ she told herself. She tried to think of what she could do, her parents wouldn’t start baking until later and she didn’t have any homework. 

“I can finish my design and finally get to sewing,” she told herself. Now inspired, she grabbed her purse, getting her pen and journal out. 

As she was about to brainstorm another idea, she saw something strange in her purse. She reached in and pulled out a black-and-red jewelry box with a mysterious design.  
“Did mom give this to me? That’s weird, she knows I’m not big on jewelry.”

She opened the box and dropped it on her desk, shielding her eyes. A large ball of light came from it that nearly blinded her. 

Adrien decided to go to his bathroom to sort himself out. He needed a distraction from his memories and the TV. The knowledge that a giant stone creature was on the loose was getting slightly concerning to him. 

He stepped out of his bathroom and noticed his bag on the floor, surrounded by multiple papers.  
“Maybe I should finish my lesson. And apologize to Nathalie,” Adrien told himself. He gathered his papers, straightening them out and organized his bag. Right before he stood up, he felt something unfamiliar.  
He pulled it out, seeing a black-and-red jewelry box with mysterious writing. 

“Did Nathalie give me this?” He asked himself. “Why wouldn’t she just hand it to me? Or did father start a jewelry line? And why wouldn’t he just hand it to me?” 

Adrien scanned the box, then opened it. He dropped it on the floor and shielded his eyes. A large ball of light came from it that almost blinded him.

Marinette uncovered her eyes, confused and shocked.  
In front of her computer, a strange red creature was floating in the air. It had big blue eyes, that reminded Marinette of a big beetle. 

“Ahh! Bug! Bug! Flying bug!” Marinette called, backing into the corner of her room. The creature flew towards her, smiling. “No, I’m not an ordinary creature. Please let me explain.”  
Marinette froze in place. The creature remained in the air, smiling.  
“It talks! It talks! Dad! Mom! There’s a talking—“  
“No, please, Marinette! Let me explain!” It called.  
Marinette reached for the closest item to her and threw a book at it, even more scared. “How do you know my name? How can you talk? What are you?!” She shouted.  
“Marinette, please calm down. Let me explain myself.”  
Marinette looked at her desk for something else to throw. Her eyes landed on a cup—luckily empty, and she had an idea. She quickly grabbed it and lunged at the creature, trapping it in the cup. It was a miracle it didn’t break. 

The creature didn’t get upset. “If this makes you feel safer, then we can do it this way.”  
Marinette had no idea what it meant and reached for the trapdoor to call out to her parents. Right as she began, she turned her head and suddenly saw the creature in front of her, now with a worried expression.  
“Wait, Marinette! Please, hear me out.” 

Marinette knew she should have called out to her parents again, but found herself, strangely trusting the creature. She shut the trapdoor slowly and sat back, listening to the strange creature’s explanation. 

After the light was gone, Adrien looked up and saw a strange black creature floating in the air. It opened its eyes and looked directly at Adrien, who decided to hide behind his couch.

“Hey, I know you’re behind that couch.” 

Adrien gulped. He gathered up his courage and slowly crawled to face the creature. 

Adrien could see the creature more clearly and stared into its green cat-like eyes without saying anything.

“What are you staring at me like that for? Do you have any food?” 

Adrien scrunched his eyebrows, not expecting something so strange to say something so casual.  
It then flew around Adrien’s room, and Adrien immediately started following it.

“Hey! What are you?” He asked.  
“Give me food and I’ll start talking,” it said, sitting on the joystick of one of Adrien’s arcade games. It then tried to eat the joystick.  
“Hey—“  
“Where’s the food here?” 

It started flying everywhere in Adrien’s room, trying to eat everything it landed on. Adrien started to chase it to get answers, but it was fast. And hungry.

“So, you’re a kwami that grants powers and I’ve been chosen to be a superhero?” Marinette asked.  
“Yes.”  
“And your name is Tikki?”  
“Yes.”  
“Is that a girl’s name?”  
“No,” Tikki said. “Us kwamis are genderless beings.”  
Marinette slumped forward in her chair, facing the box with earrings in it.  
“Can I take notes?” She asked.  
Tikki nodded, smiling.

After a lot of Adrien falling and the creature’s constant complaints about their lack of food, he finally snuck up on it and caught it in his hands, falling on the couch.  
The creature sighed, annoyed.  
“What are you?” Adrien asked. It rolled its eyes, groaning out loud. “I’m Plagg, I’m a kwami that grants magical powers. Congrats, you’ve been awarded the power of destruction. Now, do you get it?”  
Adrien shook his head, very confused.  
“Feed me, and I’ll tell you more.”

“So,” Marinette said, looking at her notes. “You’re Tikki, a genderless kwami that gives the power of creation. And I’ve been chosen to be a superhero to protect Paris?”  
Tikki nodded.  
Marinette then signed her name, folded the paper and got up to put it in her jewelry box, which she kept her sewing supplies in.  
“Marinette, what are you doing?” Tikki asked, flying to her side.  
“Leaving notes for the next superhero.”  
Tikki looked at her confused.  
“Look, Tikki. I’m not cut out to be a superhero. I’m awkward, shy and I’m clumsy. A superhero has confidence, I don’t, I don’t deserve this superhero thing. I’ll just be a failure,” Marinette admitted.  
“What?” Tikki asked, not believing her.

They flew towards her computer and turned it on to reveal the news again.  
“But, look at Paris! You have to save it!” They urged.  
Marinette saw Ivan on her screen again and remembered all of her worries from school again. 

She also remembered Alya. She quickly ran over to her computer and saw Alya on her screen. She was on a bike, pedalling dangerously close to Ivan.  
“How did I forget about Alya? She ran out of the library before we evacuated!” Marinette said, pulling at her hair. She couldn’t believe she forgot about Alya. 

“This is why you’ve been chosen. You need to save your friend and save Paris!” Tikki insisted.  
Marinette sat speechless, not knowing if she should accept.

Adrien slumped on his couch, watching Plagg swallow chips down without chewing.  
“Now, will you tell me?”  
Plagg groaned again. “Fine. I’m Plagg. I’m a kwami that gives people powers, and yours is the power of destruction.”  
“You already told me that,” Adrien said.  
“Yeah, it sums everything up,” Plagg said.  
Adrien tried a new route. “Why are you here?”  
“You were chosen.”  
“By who?”  
“I can’t say that.”

Adrien let his head fall back on his couch and stared at the ceiling.  
“Great. A kwami just appeared and started eating everything in my room and now he’s refusing to tell me anything else.”  
“They.”  
Adrien looked at Plagg. “What?”  
“They. Kwamis are genderless beings. And I told you that you got the power of destruction.”  
“Wait, there’s more of you?” Adrien asked.  
“There’s hundreds of kwamis, you’re now a superhero. Speaking of which, you should get on that,” Plagg suggested, swallowing their last chip.  
“I can’t be a superhero! I’m not even allowed out of my house, firstly. Secondly, superheroes are supposed to be confident and organized people, I’m anything but that. And I didn’t do anything to earn this, superheroes are supposed to earn their title,” Adrien complained. 

Plagg suddenly flew towards Adrien, startling him.  
“That’s why I’m here, so you can leave. And you seem confident enough for me. Also, you did earn the title, because you were chosen,” they said.  
“You’re telling me to sneak out? That’ll go great, especially when I try to explain to Nathalie that a kwami appeared in my room,” Adrien said, sarcastically.  
“No!” Plagg said. “You must never reveal your identity to anyone, not even your family can know!”  
“Why not?”  
“Even if one person knows, there’s a small chance that whoever akumatized that stone guy will find out. If the Ladybug and Chat Noir Miraculous get into the wrong hands, we’re doomed. You can’t take any risks.”  
That didn’t cheer Adrien up at all. He was now starting to get worried. “What’s the Ladybug Miraculous? Also, what would happen?”

Plagg shook their head, “Do you want to know about your superhero form or someone else’s kwami? You have a limited time to save Paris.”  
“You want me to save Paris, right now?”  
“Yeah, that was the whole point of you getting chosen today,” Plagg said like Adrien should have known that already.  
“Plagg, I’m trapped in my own home. I’ll get the biggest punishment ever if I sneak out right now. I’m not sure about this,” Adrien admitted.  
“Adrien, being Chat Noir will get you out of your house. Plus, you’ll get a cool superpower,” Plagg said, trying to pique his interest.  
Adrien didn’t say anything, he sat in silence and thought about it.  
“You’ll be Chat Noir, cats are sneaky. If you’re careful enough, you can sneak back without anyone noticing.”

Adrien smiled. “All right, Plagg. I’ll do it.”  
“Great.”  
“What’s my superpower?”  
“Cataclysm, it can destroy anything with a single touch,” Plagg started to explain.  
Adrien ran out of patience. “And what do I say to transform?” He asked, putting his ring on. 

“Claws out, but I haven’t finished explain—AHH!” Plagg got cut off mid-sentence, by Adrien transforming.

He already felt a new wave of confidence go over him as he transformed. He was amazed that his suit was smooth and fit him perfectly.  
When his transformation was done, he ran to his bathroom to look at his new self. He gaped at his appearance.  
“Why didn’t Plagg tell me anything about my suit?” 

He had two cat ears pinned to his hair, which was messy and gel-free, a bell, a mask that turned his eyes cat-green, and he had a belt that looked like a tail. 

“This is awesome!” 

Adrien then examined the staff that fell into his hand after he transformed. It was a shiny dark gray with a glowing green paw print on the upper end. He pressed it and it opened up to a small screen. Small icons appeared for binoculars, x-ray vision, a tracker, a map, it even had a phone icon.  
“Do I have a contact list?” Adrien wondered, pressing on it. 

Immediately, it started ringing with a picture of a ladybug. Adrien panicked, hung up and threw it at his counter.  
“That’s the other superhero, Plagg said. And I guess that all I have to do is go outside, find the rock dude and defeat him. Sounds easy enough.”

Adrien stepped out of his bathroom, listening for someone outside his room. He took his staff out again and it started expanding. He didn’t know how to stop it and dropped it on the floor, where it retracted.  
He picked it up, carefully and inspected it for another button. There was a small one on the back of the glowing paw print and he lightly pressed it, watching the staff expand again. He let it go, retracting it again. 

“I think I’m getting the hang of this,” he told himself, proudly.

He then ran over to his window, quickly opened it and jumped out, expanding his staff again and using it to jump onto the building in front of him. 

Marinette felt weird with the earrings on, she couldn’t believe that something so small held so much power.  
“Okay, and what’s my superpower?” Marinette asked.  
“Your yo-yo has a special power that gives you the item you need to help you defeat the villain you’re fighting. You just need to say ‘lucky charm,’” Tikki explained.  
Marinette sighed, looking at herself in the mirror.  
“I can’t believe I’m doing this.”  
“It’s okay to be nervous, Marinette. All heroes are nervous on their first day. But remember that you have to save Alya and defeat the villain,” Tikki said.  
Marinette took a deep breath, trying to remember everything Tikki told her.

“All right, Tikki. Spots on!” 

Pink lights appeared around Marinette, changing her normal clothes for a red-and-black suit. Each time something new happened, Marinette stood there awkwardly and questioned the logic of it.  
Marinette looked in her mirror again, panicking. Someone would surely recognize her, all she had to cover her face was a mask, but it only covered around her eyes. Her hair was still the same, her facial features were still the same and her confidence was still nowhere to be found.

“And now I’m supposed to save Alya and defeat Ivan, one of my classmates. All alone.” Marinette looked down, seeing her weapon. “And with a yo-yo.”  
She wished Tikki was still there to guide her because she had no idea what she was doing.

“And in other news, we’ve lost the stone creature, who called himself Stoneheart. Stay indoors and keep watching to see any updates.”

Marinette turned around, running to her computer. Nadja Chamack was standing in the middle of the street, in front of worried police officers. She couldn’t imagine what Alya was thinking, she was out there in front of Ivan. Marinette almost had a heart attack just looking at Ivan on the news.

“I need to save Al—“

“Marinette!”

She froze again.

“Marinette! Where are you?”

She didn’t say anything. She stared into the mirror, debating whether she should tell her mom about her new superhero form or not. Tikki told her that she couldn’t tell anyone her identity, but her parents would recognize her immediately if she landed on the news. 

“Marinette?! Tom, call the school, I’ll go check for Marinette in her room!” 

Marinette gasped, not knowing what to do. She needed to follow Tikki’s orders to save Alya, but she was scared. 

She then heard footsteps coming her way. Deciding to listen to Tikki, she climbed her stairs up to her bed, tripping in the process. She opened the trapdoor to her balcony, quickly shutting the trapdoor. 

“Okay, now I need to find Ivan,” she mumbled to herself. She felt her yo-yo on her waist. She took it, looping the string around her finger and threw it. It wrapped itself around a statue on a building.  
Marinette was unsure what to do next, and her thinking got cut off when she heard her trapdoor being opened. 

On impulse, she pulled the string and flew in the air, screaming in the process. She landed on the roof, hitting the statue her yo-yo wrapped around.  
“Oww,” Marinette groaned, getting up. After she caught her balance, she looked around to see if Ivan was anywhere nearby. She decided to follow the trail of police cones, deciding to use her yo-yo again. If she was going to do this, she might as well practice.  
She threw her yo-yo again and it wrapped around something she couldn’t see.

“I knew today was going to be a bad day.”

She pulled the string, flying away and screaming again. 

Adrien was having a fun time. He got the hang of his magic staff and figured out it could balance between buildings, which led to him now walking on his staff, keeping his balance. 

“This is awesome! I’m finally out of the house and I’m in a cool costume and have magic...” he stopped talking when he heard someone screaming in the distance. After a few seconds, he saw a girl in a red-and-black suit flying in the air, flying towards him.  
Then, a yo-yo wrapped itself around his staff and he quickly realized what was happening.

When he turned back around, the girl fell on his staff, causing it to fall from between the buildings and causing both of them to fall on the ground. She fell on Adrien’s chest, then quickly scooted away.  
“I’m so sorry!” 

Adrien chuckled, standing up and offering his hand to her. She awkwardly accepted, pulling herself up and brushing the dirt from her suit. She chuckled nervously.  
“So, what’s your name?”  
Adrien thought for a moment. He couldn’t say his real name, so he needed a new name.  
“Chat Noir,” he decided. “Pleased to meet you,” he added, bowing.  
He picked up his staff and smiled at the girl. “What’s yours?”  
The girl was about to answer, then something hit Chat Noir on the head and the girl moaned.  
“Clumsy Girl,” she muttered, putting her yo-yo on her waist.  
Chat Noir chuckled again, “It’s fine, Clumsy Girl, I’m still learning too.”

Both of their chuckling was cut short by a roar near them.  
“Alya! We need to save her!” The girl exclaimed, getting her yo-yo out again.  
Chat Noir nodded, extending his staff and jumping on top of another building. He tried to scan for the monster, then moved again when he didn’t see it. In the distance, the girl screamed, flying towards him again.

“AHH!” Stoneheart roared, bursting through the football (U.S. soccer) stadium. He scanned the ground, stopping at the bright red hoodie.  
“Kim! I’ll show you who’s a wuss!”  
All the kids started running, calling out for help.  
“Stoneheart!” He froze at the sound of Hawkmoth’s voice. “They’re right there! Get their Miraculous!”  
Stoneheart turned around and saw two teens in costumes standing on top of the stadium. He smiled and started walking towards them, only to back away when a teen in a black catsuit charged towards him first.

Chat Noir admitted that he shouldn’t have charged at the monster so soon, but he couldn’t stop himself. He was finally free from his overprotective family, his house and all his responsibilities. He was free of Adrien Agreste.  
“Why don’t you pick on someone your own size?” He teased.  
“I could say the same to you!” The monster replied, trying to crush him.  
Chat Noir dodged, scoffing. “Actually, I’m a superhero-in-training. I’m just right for this! And I meant someone like Gévaudan.”  
The monster roared again, charging at Chat Noir.

He barely dodged, almost falling. He then realized that the girl wasn’t with him.  
“Uh, partner?” He called out, positioning his staff to fight.  
He hit the monster’s foot, expecting it to cry out in pain. Instead, it stood still and grew in size.  
“Partner? Where are you?!”

Marinette stood on top of the football stadium, frozen in fear. She couldn’t believe her eyes. Stoneheart was bigger in real life and much more terrifying.  
‘Calm down, calm down, calm down,’ she told herself. She kept telling herself that everything was fine, but it wasn’t working.

Stoneheart roared, grabbing a goal post and throwing it. At Alya.  
“Wait, no!” Marinette called, jumping down to stop it. She stopped when she saw Chat Noir throw his staff to block it and sighed in relief when she saw that Alya was okay.  
She then saw Stoneheart grab Chat Noir, trapping him in his fist. 

“Hey, can you help me, please?!” He asked, trying to break free of his grasp. Marinette nodded, grabbing her yo-yo and wrapping it around Stoneheart, running to his backside and pulling. Somehow, she was strong enough to make him lose his balance and drop Chat Noir.

He regained his balance, walking towards Marinette and smiling. “I thought you weren’t going to show up for a second,” he joked.  
“Yeah, sorry,” she apologized. “I had some things to go over.”

Then Stoneheart swung at them, hitting them and making them fall into another goal post across the stadium. 

“Okay, it’s time for us to kick this monster’s butt!” Chat Noir declared, standing up.  
“Cataclysm!” He put his fist out, making black spots appear around it.  
“Woah,” he said, admiring it.  
“Chat Noir—“ Marinette started to say but stopped herself when Char Noir impulsively touched the goal post above them, destroying it.  
“Awesome!” He exclaimed, running towards Stoneheart.  
“Chat Noir, wait!” Marinette tried to say, but he ignored her. 

Chat Noir touched Stoneheart’s foot and nothing happened. Marinette watched as he swung at Chat Noir. He hit him, causing him to fall back.  
“Chat, are you okay?”  
He nodded, groaning in pain. “It doesn’t hurt as much as I thought it would. I think these suits are extra magic,” he said, holding out his hand.  
Marinette took it, helping him up.  
“What do we do?” He asked.

Marinette thought for a moment. “We can’t hit him, he gets bigger each time someone does. He’s gotta have some sort of weakness. That’s where the Akuma is.”  
“He’s a rock, what weakness does a rock have?”  
“I don’t know,” Marinette admitted. “We have to look for it. Come on,” she said, urging Chat Noir to fight with her.

The duo ran towards Stoneheart, searching for a weak spot.  
“Remember, don’t hit him!” Marinette reminded Chat Noir.  
“Since I don’t have my staff, that’ll be easy!”

After a minute, Marinette noticed that Stoneheart wasn’t using his right fist to punch Chat. After a few more swings, Marinette knew his weakness.

“Is that the best you can do, princess?” Chat teased.  
“I am Stoneheart!”  
Stoneheart then slammed his fists on the ground, causing Marinette and Chat Noir to fall back in pain.  
“That went great,” Chat Noir said, sarcastically.  
“Well, it’s not over,” Marinette said, gripping her yo-yo. “You keep him distracted while I use my lucky charm.”  
“All right, Bug Girl,” he said, running. Marinette was impressed by how courageous Chat Noir was in a fight. 

“Lucky charm!” She called, throwing her yo-yo up. A bright pink light appeared, then an object fell into her hands. It was a red wetsuit, covered in black spots.  
When Marinette looked up again, her vision changed. Everything was black-and-white.  
Confused, she blinked and looked around, trying to gain her vision back. When she looked around, a hose on the ground lit up in the same ladybug pattern as the wetsuit. Then Chat Noir lit up, and Alya. 

Chat Noir fell to her right side, then quickly sat up, clutching his ribs.  
“What am I supposed to do with this?” Marinette asked.  
“Take a swim?” Chat Noir suggested, trying to lift the mood.  
Marinette didn’t laugh, she had no idea what the wetsuit was for. “I don’t understand. The lucky charm is supposed to give me the item that I need in a fight.”  
Then a loud beep caught her attention. Chat Noir looked at his ring, confused.  
“You used your power, you transform back after five minutes,” Marinette explained.

She then sat down on the ground, looking at Stoneheart, who was looking for them in the seats.  
‘What have I done? Why did I accept this mission? I should have stayed home and let Chat Noir handle this on his own, he’s better at this than I am.’  
Marinette’s mind spiralled out of control, it told her that she couldn’t do it. She couldn’t defeat Stoneheart, she couldn’t save Alya, she couldn’t be a superhero.

She looked at Chat Noir and noticed her vision was back. She saw his cat ears and cat-like eyes. They reminded Marinette of the time she was at the store with her mom.

‘“You know, Marinette, nesting dolls are originally from China. They can be traced all the back to the Song Dynasty,” her mom explained.  
Marinette didn’t pay much attention, she was too busy looking at all the nesting dolls on the shelves. One in particular caught her eye—a black cat.  
“Mom, mommy, that one, I want that one!” Marinette begged, pointing at a cartoonish black nesting doll.  
Her mom chuckled, grabbing it for her and opening it, revealing another cartoonish cat inside.  
“These aren’t Chinese nesting dolls, but I can get it for you.”

Marinette squealed with joy as they exited the shop, eating chocolate and staring at her new toy.’

She looked at Stoneheart’s closed fist, losing the rest of her hope. 

‘She remembered how she opened her nesting doll, laughing at the one underneath with the same silly expression...’

‘Wait,’ Marinette thought, looking down at the wetsuit. ‘Open. Like a nesting doll.’  
“Chat, I know what to do to defeat Stoneheart,” she announced.  
“What?”  
“You need to trust me for it to work, though. We don’t have much time,” she said, looking at his ring.  
Chat’s expression changed to nervousness, and he stared at his ring.  
“Chat?”

He put his hand down, nodding. “I-I trust you.”  
Marinette smiled, standing up. “Okay, I need you to distract Stoneheart. Have him grab you, he’ll use his left fist, I’m going to make his right fist open.”  
Chat was caught off guard and almost went speechless. “What? How?”  
“We don’t have time, I promise you’ll be fine,” Marinette assured him.  
Hesitantly, Chat Noir walked out to the field, bracing himself for more injuries. 

Marinette grabbed the end of the hose on the ground, stuck it in the wet suit and tied it around the hose, making sure the water wouldn’t leak out.

“Hey, princess! I’m over here!” Chat Noir yelled, catching Stoneheart’s attention.  
“I. Am. Stoneheart!” He roared, causing the ground to vibrate. “Give me your Miraculous!”  
“If you want it, then you’ll have to get it!”  
Stoneheart accepted the challenge, grabbing Chat Noir.  
“Where is the other one?” He asked.

Marinette stepped out on cue. “Right here!”  
Stoneheart growled, opening his right fist to grab Marinette. She let him and made sure to hold the wetsuit tightly.  
“Al—Girl, the tap! Now!” She called, almost saying Alya’s name.  
Alya immediately got up and ran to the tap, turning it on.

After a few seconds, Marinette felt the suit fill up with water. She hoped it wouldn’t leak as she felt it press up against her body.  
Suddenly, Stoneheart dropped her and the suit exploded, splashing water all over his face. 

Marinette landed on her feet, running towards the glowing akumatized object. She stepped on it, watching it break and watching a black-and-purple butterfly fly out of it.  
“Bye, bye, little butterfly.”

“It worked!”

Marinette turned around, seeing Ivan on the ground, confused.  
Marinette beamed with happiness, looking at her yo-yo. Her earrings then beeped and she realized she needed to hurry back home.

“Wait!” Chat called after her. “That was awesome!” He exclaimed.  
“Yeah?”  
“Of course! I can’t believe you used a wetsuit to defeat a rock supervillain, it was like one of those superhero movies where you hear a strange voice calling to you and it tells you the answer! I wish I had that! Especially in more rocky situations like this!”  
Marinette couldn’t believe that he was somewhat accurate. And that he made a rock pun.  
“What’s your name? Or should I call you Bug Girl?” He teased.  
“I’m—“ Marinette stopped herself, realizing she couldn’t tell him her real name. She looked at her yo-yo, trying to think of something clever. “Ladybug. Wait, no that sounds—“  
“Cool!” Chat interrupted.  
“Really?”  
“Yeah, it’s simple. Simple isn’t bad, when you tell those bad guys your name, they’re going to assume that you’re just a tiny nobody in their way. Then, you go into the shadows and BOOM! You’ll come up with another brilliant plan and defeat them!” Chat beamed.  
Ladybug smiled. “Thanks, I like your name too.”

Chat opened his mouth, only to be interrupted by his ring beeping again.  
“I should go,” he said. “Hopefully, we’ll meet again soon, Ladybug,” he added with another bow. He gave her no time to respond as he ran to retrieve his staff and got out of the stadium.

Maybe being Ladybug wasn’t so bad.

“Where am I?” Ladybug looked back, seeing Ivan still on the ground. She looked down at her feet, picking up and reading the crumbled note.  
“‘You haven’t got the guts to tell Mylène you like her. Wuss.’”

Ladybug sighed, sitting down next to Ivan.  
“Hey, there’s nothing wrong with telling someone you like them, Ivan. You just need to stand up for yourself, build up some confidence. And, when you’re ready, you can tell her how you feel.”  
He turned his head shyly, then looked at her confused.  
“How did you—“  
“That was so amazing!”

Ivan and Ladybug turned to face Alya, still recording everything that was going on.  
“Who are you? Are you the new protector of Paris? Who turned Ivan into Stoneheart?”  
Ladybug went speechless at the many questions that she didn’t know how to answer. “Chat Noir and I are new at this. We’re still getting the hang of this whole superhero thing.”  
“Can you at least tell us your name?”  
She thought about it for a moment, then heard Chat Noir’s words echo in her head.  
“Ladybug,” she said, proudly. 

Ladybug tried to speak again, then got cut off by her earring beeping again and she realized she needed to head home immediately.  
“I need to go, but thank you for the questions!” She said, waving at the teens. 

She pulled out her yo-yo, throwing it and flying up, this time with more control. 

“Oh, how careless,” Hawkmoth said, smugly. “Looks like Paris’s new heroes didn’t get clear instructions when they received their Miraculous. Let’s see how this ends out!”  
He then cackled, watching his window close.

Marinette got settled in her home, she told her parents that she got stuck by the police. She was in her room and told Tikki that she did it, she defeated Stoneheart.  
“I’m so proud of you, Marinette! I knew you could do it!” Tikki cheered. 

“Marinette! Dinner!”

“Do you eat?” Marinette asked Tikki.  
“Yes, especially after transforming,” they said.  
“Hmm, are you sure my parents can’t see you?”  
“No one can see me! Your identity must remain a secret.”  
Marinette thought for a moment. “You can go into my purse and I can feed you when no one is looking.”

“Marinette! Come on, the foods getting cold!”  
“Coming!” Marinette called. She then opened her purse and Tikki flew in. She really hoped her parents wouldn’t suspect anything and braced herself for dinner.

“Looks yummy,” Marinette said, looking at the croque-madame sandwiches her mom prepared.

“Now, I know today hasn’t gone the way you hoped,” Her mom said, sitting down. “But, we can share about our day and try to look—“

Her mom got interrupted by the TV, telling all of Paris that it was urgent.

“We’ve received mysterious footage from an unknown source that shows two people who seem to be dressed as superheroes. In the footage, we can see that one of them—who called herself ‘Ladybug,’ transformed Stoneheart back into an unnamed student and announced that she and her partner, Chat Noir, will be the new protectors of Paris.  
I’m your reporter, Nadja Chamack, don’t be bemused, it’s just the news!”

“Superheroes in Paris?” Marinette’s dad said to himself.  
Marinette awkwardly smiled as she saw herself fighting Stoneheart, praying that her parents wouldn’t recognize her.  
“They look a little young to be fighting such vicious villains,” her mom commented.  
“Uh, I’m sure they’re older,” Marinette said, quickly. “You know, the TV makes people look smaller and I’m sure that the girl recording was just holding it at an angle—“  
“It’s fine, we can forget about the news,” her mom said, walking to grab the remote. She turned off the TV before Alya got a closer look at Ladybug and Marinette sighed in relief.

“Let’s just talk about our day, the birthday order may be cancelled, but we can still do something fun as a family,” her mom suggested.

Adrien made it home just in time, meaning that he transformed back mid-jump and landed on his shoulder.  
He quickly got over the pain and got him and Plagg food.

“This tastes awful!” Plagg complained.  
“Ugh,” Adrien groaned, falling back on his couch. “Come on, I asked my personal chef to cook all of that! I thought you said you’ve been with other rich superheroes in the past.”  
“I have,” Plagg said, smelling a piece of mille-feuille and dropping it. “I didn’t say I enjoyed their food. You rich people have got to get better taste in food.”  
“What do you eat then?”  
“Hmm,” they thought out loud. 

After a few minutes, Plagg stuffed their mouth with camembert.  
It was now Adrien’s turn to complain.  
“Camembert, great. All they eat is camembert. Now I’m going to smell like stinky cheese all the time.”

“I need to get my mind off of this,” he mumbled, turning his TV on.

“You know, Marinette. If you want to, you can help us design another cake order that hasn’t been cancelled yet,” her dad offered.  
Marinette was about to speak, then was interrupted by all of their phones alerting them. Marinette quickly got hers out, looking apologetically at Tikki for the loud noise and read the alert, “‘Urgent news: Remain inside! Parisians have been reported turning into stone people.’”

“Stone people? But I thought Ladybug and Chat Noir defeated him. How could this happen?” Her dad asked.  
Marinette’s heart started to race. ‘What did I do wrong?’  
“Can I go upstairs?” She asked, reaching for her purse.  
Her parents looked at each other for a moment. “Sure.”

Marinette quickly excused herself and ran upstairs to her room, letting Tikki out.  
“Tikki, this is bad, really, really bad!”  
She sat on her chair, turning her computer on. She watched the news nervously, seeing more people turned into stone.  
“What did I do wrong?”  
“Did you capture the Akuma?”  
Marinette put her hands down from her hair and stared at them.  
“What?”  
Tikki widened their eyes, finishing the rest of their croque-madame. “You have to capture the Akuma and de-evilize it before it can multiply and akumatize more people!”  
Marinette felt like sobbing, she knew she was going to mess up.  
“I knew it! I’m not cut out to be a superhero, I knew I would mess up!” Marinette covered her face, ashamed.  
“Marinette, it’s okay,” Tikki assured her, patting her head. “It was your first time fighting, all heroes make mistakes. The important thing now, is that you capture the original Akuma and make sure that Ivan doesn’t get upset again.”

Marinette put her hands down, pouting. “Tikki, I don’t deserve to be a superhero! I just don’t have what it takes, I mean, did you see Chat Noir? He was everything I wanted to be! He’s perfect for the job! I’m a nobody, I don’t deserve to be Ladybug.”  
Tikki gasped. “Marinette, everyone is different when transforming. I promise you that you’ll get the hang of it, you just have to keep trying.”  
“It’s no use, Tikki. I messed up, bad. Really, bad. Chat Noir has to capture the Akuma himself, I can’t do it,” Marinette insisted.  
Tikki shook their head. “Marinette, Ladybug is the only one who can de-evilize Akumas! Paris is relying on you right now! You have to go!”  
Marinette sighed, turning her computer off. “Thanks, Tikki. I know you’re just trying to help, but I’m not right for this.”

Marinette got out of her chair, walking over and finding her page of notes again. She stared at it and reached for her earrings.  
“Marinette! What are you doing?” Tikki asked.  
She thought about Chat Noir, how confident he was, how easy he made fighting look like, how happy he was, even when fighting. He was the complete opposite of her, whoever gave her the Miraculous, made a mistake.  
“I’m sorry, Tikki. It’s for the best.”  
“Wait, no—“ 

Marinette held the earrings, scanning her room to see where Tikki went.  
“Tikki?”  
There was no sign of them, then she realized that taking off the earrings must have caused them to disappear. 

She sighed again, putting them back in the jewelry box and tucking them away in her drawer. She looked at herself in the mirror and made her way downstairs, catching her parent’s attention.  
“Is everything okay, Marinette?” Her mom asked, clearing the table.  
Marinette wanted to say yes, she wanted to forget about Ladybug, she wanted to pretend she was okay. But, she couldn’t.

She looked down, shaking her head. She failed, again.

“Oh, Marinette,” her dad said, walking over to hug her. “I know today has been a tough day for you. Do you want to talk about it?”  
Marinette quietly sobbed into her dad’s shoulder, nodding her head.  
“It was just so scary, I thought I wasn’t going to see you again,” she mumbled, hugging her dad tight.  
“It’s okay now, you’re safe. Your mother and I will always be here for you,” her dad promised.

Her mom walked over, resting her hand on her shoulder. “Do you want to sit down to watch a movie? We promise we won’t leave you.”  
Marinette lifted her face from her dad’s shoulder, nodding slightly. 

Maybe something good did happen today.

“What do you mean, I can’t do anything?” Adrien asked.  
“Only Ladybug can capture Akumas.”  
Adrien’s face dropped. “What’s the point of me then? If only Ladybug can capture it, then there’s no point of me! I’m just...useless,” he said, falling face-first on his bed.  
Adrien couldn’t help but think about his role in his family. He always felt alone, he had no siblings, no one to talk to, and no one to bond with. 

Plagg stared at Adrien from the table, awkwardly eating the rest of their camembert.  
“What?”  
“I’m useless again,” Adrien mumbled into his pillow.  
Plagg swallowed their camembert, quickly flew over to Adrien’s side and asked him to repeat what he said.  
Adrien lifted his face from his pillow, his vision getting blurry. “I’m useless again! This Chat Noir thing was supposed to make me useful for once! I thought I finally found something for me, something that could distract me from my lonely life.”  
He put his face in his pillow again, “Instead, Paris only needs Ladybug.”

Plagg sighed, making Adrien look at them.  
“You’re not the first Chat Noir to say that.”  
Adrien raised his eyebrow, “Really?”  
“Yeah, but Chat Noir is needed. Sure, Ladybug may have the power of creation, but the power of destruction is much more fragile. It’s very important that it doesn’t get into the wrong hands, like whoever akumatized that guy” Plagg explained.  
“How am I supposed to even handle it? I can’t even use my power properly! I used it on a football goal! A football goal, Plagg!” Adrien groaned, burying his face in his pillow again.  
Plagg scoffed, “It was your first time, you’re not going to be perfect the first time.”

Adrien groaned loudly again, not feeling better.  
Plagg moaned, realizing how big the issue was. “Look, once I had a Chat Noir who didn’t use his cataclysm for two years. He always said that he was afraid of the destruction it would bring, and he wouldn’t listen to me when I told him he needed to use it.”  
Plagg paused, remembering the long talks they had with the previous Chat Noir.

Adrien sniffled, “Was he also the son of a rich fashion mogul who wasn’t allowed out of his house?”  
Plagg chuckled and shook their head.  
“He was rich but allowed out of his house. But, he was afraid of the cataclysm, because he always thought that he would mess up immediately and hurt someone. Skip ahead, two years and he was forced to use it, and it ended up with him saving everyone. You kind of remind me of him,” Plagg admitted.  
Adrien lifted his head and sat upon his knees. “I do?”  
“Yeah. And destruction isn’t always bad, it depends how and when it’s used.”  
Adrien wiped his tears away, “Really?”  
“Of course! And just think about how happy Ladybug was with you!”

Adrien thought for a moment, she told him she was clumsy, she was shy and awkward, but she did an amazing job defeating Stoneheart.  
“Don’t you remember how awkward and scared she was around you? After you talked to her, she changed completely! It was like she was a whole other person,” Plagg reminded him.  
“You mean I did that?” Adrien asked, surprised. “I helped her overcome her nervousness?”  
“Duh! Who else helped her defeat Stoneheart and told her how awesome she was?” Plagg said, stating the obvious.  
“I did that,” Adrien whispered to himself, smiling.

Plagg floated, confused. “So, you’re better now?”  
Adrien looked up at them, thinking. “For now, yeah. I had fun and helped Ladybug transform into an amazing superhero.”  
Plagg smiled, flying back to their camembert.  
“Thanks, Plagg,” Adrien said, watching them stuff camembert down their throat.

Maybe something good did happen today.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope y’all like it, leave any constructive criticism if you want.


End file.
